


What A Rainy Day

by GardenWarrior



Category: As I Lay Dying - William Faulkner
Genre: F/M, Family Angst, Love, NSFW, overcoming mental illness, personal angst, sexy times in chapter 4
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-14
Updated: 2016-10-14
Packaged: 2018-08-22 08:08:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,598
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8278837
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GardenWarrior/pseuds/GardenWarrior
Summary: Darl Bundren has recently been released from the asylum- now sane and eager to start a new and improved life. He gains employment at Jackson's local bakery, and in a few rainy days he finds love and something important that he lost.





	1. The Drizzle

**Author's Note:**

> My first real-life, completed fanfiction! Thanks a ton to my friends who proofread it! The reason who I wrote this is because we had to read "As I Lay Dying" for my English class, and figured "If I have to read this book, I may as well have fun with it." Enjoy!

There was a slight drizzle as the clouds ran across the sky, and the feeling of it on your skin was calming, peaceful. Walking quickly down the muddy road, you come to your destination- a small bakery smelling of bread and cookies. Entering the refuge- a warm sanctuary of yellows and oranges-you’re greeted by the familiar face of the baker. He was a mild-tempered man in his fifties, and was generally a happy person, always smiling and laughing. Ginger hair framed his chubby face and rosey cheeks, with a fluffy beard gracing his chin. He was blessed greatly with a wife who loved him- one who was thin in comparison to his larger frame, and had long, golden hair with pallid skin and blue eyes that help the ocean. He also had two children- twins, who were both boys, one who was rambunctious and another who was quiet as a mouse. You would watch the young-uns as the husband and wife worked hard, and you loved every minute of it. You would play in the back room- coloring, telling stories, playing hide-and-seek- as their parents worked. You were like a sister to them, teaching them almost all they knew. Today was a special day though- you had heard that a new person was coming to help at the bakery! You were excited to meet a new person, as the city wasn’t as bustling as people thought it was.

“Ahhh! ‘Ello there missy! Yer lookin awfully ‘appy today! Come on in- the new boy is ‘ere, I want yew to meet ‘im!” the jovial baker exclaimed (he seemed to have no “indoor voice”) as he beckoned you behind the counter. You entered the work room- the early morning bread had just finished baking and the oven’s fire was out- to find a young man about your age standing at one of the large wooden tables, already hard at work kneading batter for the next batch of bread. “Aye! Darl! Come say hi to the missy! Yew’ll be seeing a lot of each other!”

The brunette man came forward shyly, shaking slightly. “H-hello,” he stuttered, “I’m Darl. I-I-It’s an honor to meet yew. I ho-hope we’ll get along well!” He offered you his hand, the trembling increased dramatically, indicating his nervousness. You shook it and introduced yourself, smiling softly. “Nice t-to meet yew…” He stepped back and went back to work, avoiding your eyes. You look over to the baker- Mr. Graham Platt- asking where the children were, until you noticed him eyeing Darl disappointingly. He took you upstairs into the living room, as he lived above the bakery, and sighed heavily and tsked himself.

“The chil’en are sick… So Maddie’s lookin’ after ‘em. As with Darl… please be patient with ‘im. He, well, he just got out of the asylum. Couldn’t find a job anywhere, ‘omeless fer weeks ‘till Maddie found ‘im shiverin’ on the sidewalk. Took ‘im in immediately, yew know ‘ow she is.” You nodded, remembering the Maddie, too, had been in an asylum for a short while after she had tried to kill herself, but Mr. Platt had helped her through her time there, bringing her fresh-baked goodies every day. “So I’m puttin’ ‘im to work ‘ere, and that’ll ‘opefully get ‘im on ‘is feet. So tuhday, yer’ll be werking with ‘im. Show ‘im the ropes, make ‘im feel at ‘ome.”

You agreed cheerfully, “Of course! I’ll do my best!” You grabbed your apron Mrs. Maddie Platt made for you- embroidered with your name written in your favorite color as a birthday gift- and went downstairs. You found Darl the same as you left him- his shaggy hair hanging over his hazel eyes- and approached him. “Hey Darl! Uh- I think you kneaded that enough, want me to help you put it in the oven?”

Darl nodded, “Yes, please. If yew could,” You show him how to place the dough in the loaf pan properly and how to make sure the oven’s fire is a good temperature. You look over to Darl, making sure he understood, and noticed his eyes tearing up. He looked distant, almost in a trance- like the fire was hypnotizing him. Placing a hand on his shoulder made him jump back into reality, his eyes darting wildly as he realized where he was. “Thank yew miss. What should we do now?” Directing him to the front, you show him the ropes of opening the store- sweeping, unlocking the door and such- and wait behind the counter with him. Darl shifts around uncomfortably, adjusting his apron and hair, getting flour on himself. He coughs a few times, almost embarrassed at the quietness between you two. Just as you were about to strike up a conversation, the door opened.

“Good mornin’! I’m here fer an order of bread!” A high-pitched voice sang as the town’s librarian entered from the pouring rain. Darl laughed quietly, going to the back room to grab a loaf, leaving you to ring up the purchase. As you gather the money, you hear a loud scream, a clatter of metal on the floor, the pounding of boots.

“Goddammit Darl! What the Hell!” Platts roared, drawing Darl away from the oven’s fire. Entering the room, you find Darl was shaking and crying, holding out a hand that was extremely burned. Mr. Platts’ face was beet red as he lifted Darl to his feet and pushed him towards you, “Go take him to the damned doctor!” He was still grumbling to himself as you and Darl shuffled into the harsh rain.


	2. The Pouring

You stroked Darl’s hair in an attempt to comfort him, shooshing him and whispering calming word into his ear. When he had finally stopped crying, you both headed to Dr. Peabody’s office. “Darl… what happened? Did you accidentally burn yourself?” You asked, concern filling your voice. He looked blankly at you, his mouth agape as he tried to remember what happened. 

“I… I saw my mom. I had to save her.” Darl began shaking worse than normal, frantically fidgeting and stumbling, holding onto you for support. “I saw her. Darl saw her.”

“Are you ok? Should we stop for a moment?” The rain was beating harshly against your skin, but if Darl needed to rest, you’d wait out here as long as it took.

“Yes yes yes yes yes” He said, his eyes growing larger and shoulders rising. He began spazzing frantically, and soonafter began crying in a fit of rage. Darl started muttering to himself, although you couldn’t recognize what he was saying. Something about a coffin and a gem?

You quickly guided Darl into Dr. Peabody’s office, away from the rain. The office was almost pure white with occasional streaks and shades of green or blue on the walls and floors. Sitting him down in the nearest chair, you take Darl’s unburnt hand and held it in yours. “Darl, please, I need you to come back. Darl, Darl!” You whispered frantically, attempting to get your friends attention. He could only stare at you like a startled deer, his body shaking and spazzing uncontrollably. Getting more and more nervous, you call for Doctor Peabody, asking him to help. 

Peabody came rushing into the room, and seemed to know what was going on. He frantically grabbed Darl and rushed him to a back room. You heard a brief scream from Darl before there was absolute silence, and soonafter the doctor came back out again, slightly agitated. “I took care of Darl and his burn. He should be better in a few moments. Who should I post the bill to?” You pondered for a moment.

“Uhm, Platts mayhaps? Darl works for him, so that sounds good.” Peabody simply nods and grabs a piece of nearby paper, noting your words down. There was a few moments of Peabody writing notes down until he stopped and looked up at you.

“So you work with Darl?”

“Yes sir”

“Ah, what a shame. He used to be such a nice young man. A little queer, but kind.” Peabody shook his head and sighed heavily.

“You knew Darl before he went to the asylum?”

“Ah, yes. I knew his whole family before…” He hesitated, “before his mother died.” He proceeded to tell you about what happened when his mother Addie Bundren died- how they had to move the whole family to Jefferson in order to bury her, and the hardships they faced. “And then there was the barn,” he pursed his lips, “Darl… well, he burnt it straight to the ground. And the Bundrens either had to put Darl in the asylum or face charges. Well, they weren’t exactly the kindest people I’ve met.”

A few minutes of quiet passed as you went over Peabody’s story in your mind until you heard Darl moaning in the other room. The two of you exchanged glances of acknowledgement as you went to check on Darl, who had just sat up and was holding his head in his hands. He was breathing heavily, and not shaking as badly as he was this morning. His burnt hand was bandaged, and seemed to have a black mixture painted underneath the wrappings. You placed a hand on his knee and he looked up at you- his piercing hazel eyes meeting yours as if he was staring into your soul- he gave you a small smile and asked for some water.

About half an hour later, you two left Peabody’s office and gradually made your way to Platts’ bakery. Thankfully it wasn’t a busy day, so Platts wasn’t swamped with work, and he was relieved to see the two of you again. “Aye! Good to see yew tew again! Hopefully yew’ll still be able to werk again, ah?” Darl nods slowly, looking towards you, who grinned and gave him a thumbs-up, happy to assist your new friend.

The two of you spent the rest of the day busy as bees- making a cake for the mayor’s son’s birthday, cookies for a schoolboard meeting, and an almost never ending stream of rolls and bread. You two learned a lot about each other during the day- his hobbies, his dreams, and he briefly mentioned his family…

“Yeah, my family was nice! I-” Darl’s voice got caught in his throat for a moment, “I m-miss them,” His face went blank for a minute.

“What were they like?” You asked, hoping to know more about the awful people who sent him to the asylum.

“I had three br-brothers… and a si-sister,” He shakes his head, “They weren’t the best people, but Hell, they di-di-did what they had t-to do.” There was an awkward brief silence as he mixed the batter for cookies. “Could yew please come ‘n help me put these on the pan?” He inquired, changing the subject.

The rest of the day was peaceful, and that was a good thing too. The little ‘uns were better from whatever illness they had, and they ran downstairs laughing and yelling. However, when they got to Darl, they retreated slightly and stared at him. The eldest- Jessie- approached him slowly, “Hullo mis’er, we’re Jessie ‘n Jade, ‘s nice tew meet ya,” he whispered, holding out his hand. Darl got down on the twin’s level and shook Jessie’s hand.

“‘Ello! N-Nice to meet y-yew lil’ ‘uns!” He smiles softly. He started talking with the little ones, asking them how they were and the like, until Mr. Platts entered the kitchen.

“Aye! Yew tew! The Missus and I wanna go out tuhnight, can yew look after the yung ‘uns?” He asked, wrapping his arms around Maddie, nuzzling her cheek.

“Of course!” You exclaimed, looking at Darl. He nodded, shyly smiling.

“H-Happy to help yew!” He grinned broadly, rustling the children’s hair.

You two played a lot of things with the kids- pretend pirates, hide-and-seek, and tag- and all was well, until dinnertime. You were getting sandwiches and applesauce ready for the boys until you heard what sounded like a punch, followed by a scream and more punching. You hurried into the playroom where the boys were to find Darl there, restraining Jade. “Jewel! Jewel stop it Goddammit!” Darl yelled, a few tears falling down his stubbled face. You calmly defused the fight, and told the children that there would be no dessert after dinner as punishment. You marched the lil’ ‘uns downstairs to the dinner table and went back up to check on Darl, who was shaking violently.

“Darl? Are you ok?” You asked, and he nodded in responce, holding his head in his unburnt hand. “Who’s Jewel?” He simply shook his head, standing up and stared at you.

“My brother… the lil’ ‘uns are just like my brothers… Goddamn.” He sighed and wandered out of the room.  
Many hours later, the kids were asleep, and you and Darl were resting at one of the tables in the kitchen, helping yourselves to some cookies you baked earlier that day. “Ah, today was nice! Thank yew for helping me, and I’m sorry about that breakdown earlier…” Darl laughed it off, as if nothing big had happened. “Yew were awfully nice to me, no one’s been this nice to me in years, it means a lot to me-it does! Yew’re such a sweetheart,” He blushed slightly, covering his stubble and mouth with his hands. 

“Ah shucks, it’s the least I could do!” You exclaim, taking another cookie and laughing slightly. Darl peers at you for a few moments, and you couldn’t help but feel as if he was looking into your mind. You suddenly became self-conscious of your own thoughts, trying to push them down and focus on what was happening around you- the taste and smell of the cookies, the feel of a draft on your body, how Darl was looking at you as if he wanted to kiss you.

“I d-do, yew know,” He murmured faintly. Your heat shot up, staring at him. He repeated himself “I do wanna kiss yew, if yew’re o-o-ok with it.” He purses his lips, his cheeks bright red and his eyes darting from his hands to your face.

You look up at him and move closer to him, moving your chair to touch his. “Darl,” you whisper, “I’m ok with it,” He looks surprised and then nervous, brushing his hair out of his face.

“I n-never kissed anyone b-b-before,” he muttured, leaning in closer to you, “so please forgive me if I’m… inexperienced.” You lean in and feel his warm, soft lips lock with yours for a brief moment before he pulled away embarrassed, covering his mouth again. You pull away too, looking around to find why he had pulled away so suddenly- Mr. and Mrs. Platts had come home- soaking wet from the rain- and neither of you noticed. The couple was smiling broadly while peering at you.

“Yew tew make such a cute couple!” Mrs. Platts cooed, clapping excitedly. 

“Why don’t yew tew go ‘ome for the evening?” Mr. Platts laughed and winked, heading upstairs. “As long as yew tew come back fer werk tuhmorrow!” The happy couple rushed up the stairs, laughing softly to themselves. 

“Do you have a place to sleep Darl?” You question the young man. He shakes his head no, blushing from embarrassment. You give him a sad smile, “Well, you can stay at my house,” You two take each other’s hand and walk into the drizzling rain.


	3. The Deluge

Walking home in the rain, you start to hum a faint song to fill in the quiet. You hear Darl sigh, and he then stops abruptly. You turn to face your companion, asking him what’s wrong, nervous that he was going to have another breakdown. “Naw, naw, nothing’s wrong… I j-just. I- What are we?” You give him an unsure look, commenting that you don’t know, that you’re unsure of if you two are just friends or something more. “W-well miss… I wouldn’t mind courting y-yew… I like yew a-a-a lot,” He catches his breath, looking at the ground. 

“Darl, I wouldn’t mind that either.” You giggle, coming closer to embrace him. “I’d like that a lot.” You hear him give a sharp breath in and feel his shoulders relax and ease the tension between the two of you. Darl embraces you, squeezing you hard, and you hear him begin to cry.

“Thank yew, th-thank yew!” He sobbed loudly, “Thank yew!” You break the embrace, smiling as tears pricked your eyes. 

“We should get going home,” you whisper, breaking your embrace and begin walking again, holding his hand and singing your song. Darl started singing as well and by the time you got home, you both were singing loudly and laughing like drunkards. “My home is your home!” You exclaim, welcoming Darl into your house- a small white-bricked house with blue roofing, and only one bedroom- and leading him to your room. “I don’t have an extra bed or couch, but I can set you a place on the floor!” You smile, grabbing an extra pillow from your bed. 

“Uh, actually miss,” you hear Darl’s voice from behind you, “I was hopin’ we could actually share the bed tonight,”

"Of course!" You exclaim, about to go get extra blankets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that this one was so short! I had to cut it off so if you don't wanna read the porny bit, you don't have to and it still makes sense in the story...


	4. The Shower

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More like a shower of cu- never mind.  
> This is the porny chapter. TW include slight biting and bruising (in the form of love-bites).

You turn around to see Darl unbuttoning his shirt, seeing his well-toned body peek out from behind his stained grey shirt. “What do yew think?” He smirked, seemingly showing off his body, “Could two people fit in there?” 

“Of course,” you laugh slightly, admiring his body, “Do you need pajamas or anything?” You tease, taking Darl’s shirt out of his hands. 

“Naw lil’ lady, I like to sleep naked, if that’s ok with yew,” he simpered, taking off his belt, letting it fall to the floor as he eyed you intensely.

“What a coincidence, so do I,” you say, beginning to undress yourself as well. Darl gives a low whistle, admiring your physique as took off his pants, revealing his erect cock. “Oh Darl!” You muttered into his ear, wrapping one hand around his shoulder while the other grasped his cock, pulling it slightly, “we should really get to bed, it’s late,” smirking, sit down on the bed, staring at him and motioning him to come over.

He chuckled slightly under his breath, walking over and standing in front of you, his dick near your lips, tempting you. The long member didn’t fit all the way down your throat, even while attempting to deepthroat it. Darl’s eyes shut, and he starts moaning loudly, “Ah yeah, yew’re good at this,” he grabs a hold of your hair, gently tugging it. “Keep goin’, don’t stop!” He mewled, enjoying the feeling of his cock in your soft, wet mouth. You continue to bob your head on his cock, enjoying his moans and the taste of his salty precum, and soon after you felt your own wetness slide down your legs. You began playing with yourself, moaning as you thought of Darl’s cock sliding into your pussy. Darl pulled your hair and you immediately stopped sucking, looking up at the brunette. His piercing eyes looked at your mouth, which was dripping with saliva and precum and gave you a smug look, proud at how well you had done. He leaned down, kissing you and gently playing with your breasts as his tongue entered your mouth, playing with yours. He withdrew slightly, leaving a small trail of saliva between your mouths, “Do you want it inside yew?” He whispered, still staring at your lips.

“Yes,” you murmured desperately, still playing with your clit.

“Yes, what?” He asked, grabbing your breasts with more force, pulling your nipples and pinching them slightly.

“Yes, I want you inside of me.” You said firmly, trying to keep yourself from crying out in pleasure. 

He chuckled softly, “Good girl, on your hands and knees, and face that way,” he motioned to the opposite wall, facing away from him. You did as he said,feeling exposed as your wet hole faced him. “I’m gonna put it in now, lemme know if it hurts too much,” He said breathlessly, gently rubbing the tip of his dick on your clit before sliding it inside of you. You moan, surprised at how it makes you feel. “Goddamn,” Darl grunted, “yew feel so good-” He slowly started to move his cock in and out of you- gentle, but firm. You whimpered at how large his cock felt inside of you- making your body weak with pleasure every time he penetrated you. 

You began muttering his name over and over to yourself “Darl, Darl, Darl, yes!” as you fell to your elbows, face down in the sheets. You hear him groan and grunt behind you, moaning your name occasionally as he starts to fuck you faster and harder. “Oh Darl yes!” You exclaim, biting the sheets to keep yourself from being too loud. You felt him grab your hair and pull you up, your back now against his torso.

He began biting and sucking your shoulder, gradually moving up to your neck and then littered your jawline with kisses, praising you at how good you were at taking his dick, how glad he was that you were his first time. He nibbled on your earlobe and started kissing his way back down to your neck, leaving small bite marks and bruises along it. Your heart starts pounding hard as Darl’s strong hands start playing with your breasts again, sending shivers of delight through you as you reach climax. “I- I’m gonna cum,” He breathes into your ear as his body begins to shake, your orgasm nearly sending him over the edge. He takes his dick out of you and pushes you onto your back, now facing him and he leans over you, his hand frantically stroking his dick. “S-Say my name! Say it!” He shouted, biting his lip and closing his eyes.

“Darl! Darl cum all over me!” You wail, your body still tense from your orgasm, “Darl!” You close your eyes as a surge of cum splattered over your body up to your neck, then another, and another, gradually getting weaker until Darl stopped stroking, looking over you while panting hard, admiring his work. 

“Yew’re so pretty with my cum all over yew.. Damn yew were good!” He smiles, sitting down beside you. “Uh, how should we clean the mess up?” You laugh and use a box of tissues under your bed to wipe up the sperm. Finally clean, you and Darl snuggled together in pure bliss. You handed Darl his shirt and put on your own, and right before you two fell asleep- his arms wrapped around your body- you heard him murmur “I love yew,”


	5. The Monsoon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW cursing... 'cause Jewel.

The next morning you wake up to find Darl besides you, playing with your hair and stroking your back softly. “Good mornin’ cutie,” He giggled as you turned to face him, “How’re yew?” You rub the sleep out of your eyes and kiss Darl on the cheek.

“I’m good, I’m glad you’re here,” you smile. Darl agreed and kissed you back on the lips. “Let’s get up and eat some breakfast!” You suggested, sitting up, brushing the hair out of your new boyfriend’s eyes. He sat up and decided to carry you into your small kitchen bridal-style, sitting you down on one of the chairs.

“Ok cutie, I’ll make yew some breakfast, wait here!” He exclaimed, running to your icebox and began preparing breakfast. He and you had some small conversations about the night before and the day coming up on you two, but eventually Darl brought you breakfast! It was a lovely meal- a piece of toast with butter, a nice fruit cup, some grits, followed with a cold glass of milk. You smiled broadly at him, thanking him profusely as you two began to eat the lovely breakfast. Following the meal, you two got dressed for the day and stepped out into the rain- “Ah, still rainin’?” Darl remarked, “Well, we need it.” You two started your way to the bakery, laughing and singing like last night.

“Good Mornin’ yew tew! Have fun last night?” Mr. Platt laughs as you two walked in.

Darl blushed slightly, “Aye, yeah we did!” He laughed, squeezing your hand slightly. “But we gotta get to work!” Darl went upstairs to get your aprons as Mrs. Platts joked with you about the previous evening. 

Soon, though the bakery opened and customers came in and out, in and out, and all was well. Until, that is, a young man walked into the bakery. He had shaggy, dirty blonde hair and hazel eyes. He was about a head taller than Darl, and had a similar aura about him. You and Darl were in the front, laughing and writing up orders as the young man walked in. The man stumbled in, clearly hungover, and rested his head on his hands with his elbows on the counter. “What dew yew got?” the man questioned, not looking at either of you.

“Well, we got doughnuts, bread, muffins, almost anything!” You exclaim, motioning towards the glass case filled with goodies. “So what can we get you?” 

The man looked over at the case, “How ‘bout 4 ‘a those muffins?” he asked, pointing to some banana nut muffins. “Those don’t look ‘alf bad,”

”Ok! Darl, please go get some of them from the kitchen!” You exclaim, starting to ring up the purchase.

”Wait, Darl?” The man questioned, looking up towards your boyfriend. “Darl Bundren?” The stranger stood up straight, glaring at Darl.

Darl looked at the stranger intensely, as if trying to remember his name. He took a few steps back, shaking violently, “Jewel?”

The man, Jewel apparently, leaped over the counter and lifted Darl up by his neck, screaming violently. “YOU GODDAMN SON OF A BITCH. WHAT THEY HELL ARE ‘OU DOIN’ OUTTA THE ASYLUM? DID YOU ESCAPE?? DID YOU KILL EVERYONE THERE? YOU SON OF A BITCH-START TALKIN’!” Darl tried to escape from Jewel’s grasp, his face turning bright red.  
“You stop it! Stop it NOW!” You hollered, pushing Jewel, making him lose his grip on Darl. Hitting the floor with a loud *thud*, Darl started gasping for air, coughing excessively. 

Mr. Platts entered, his face redder than normal, “Aye! Yew! Why are yew behind the counter? Back! Back damn it!” Jewel backed away, glaring menacingly at the baker.

”Sir, are yew aware that yew’re ‘arboring a crazy man? He’ll burn this place to the Goddamn ground!”

”No he’s not! He’s better now!” You argue, “The asylum let him out! He’s safe!” Jewel grunted disapprovingly, moving towards the door.

”He better be, or else I’ll carry him back to the asylum m’self. I’ll tell the other’s yer ‘ere. I know Cash and Varadaman missed yew an awful lot.” He stated as he left the bakery into the rainy outdoors.

Darl worked hard the rest of the day, constantly apologizing for Jewel’s behavior. He jittered more than normal as well, and was constantly paranoid that his family would come bursting into the bakery at any second. You tried to reassure him that he would be safe, that you would protect him, but that didn’t keep him calm for long.

You two left the bakery into a violent thunderstorm, and Darl nearly jumped out of his boots when he saw them-all of his siblings- standing right outside. There was the man from earlier- Jewel- with a handsome, muscular man with straight, long hair and a slight beard framing his face. Next to them was a smaller framed girl with long, curly, chocolate brown locks with a heart-shaped face holding a baby and the hand of a small boy with large green eyes and curly hair. You grasp Darl’s hand, looking over the strangers carefully, weary that they would hurt him. The bearded man came up first, standing in front of you two. “Howdy Darl, Jewel tells me yur all good in the head?” Darl nodded, stepping back slightly. The stranger looks at you, “The name’s Cash, nice tuh meet yuh!” He held out his hand and you shook it, eyeing him suspiciously. You introduce yourself, having to repeat yourself multiple times to be heard over the rain.

The young girl tugs Cash’s shirt, “We should git to somew’ere without rain,” she suggests, shivering tremendously. Cash nods, and asks if they could go to wherever it was you two were going. Without speaking a word, you turn to Darl who nods, you invite the family over for a cup of tea and to talk things out. Darl nods, holding your hand tighter. You tell them to come along and start walking in the rain.

A few moments later you arrive at your house, dreading trying to fit everyone inside of it. As the family entered, they properly introduced themselves. Cash entered, followed by Jewel, who apologized for his behavior earlier. The girl introduced herself as Dewey Dell, and her son named Drake. Finally, the little boy entered, introducing himself as Vardaman, beamly brightly, “‘hank yew fur takin’ care ‘o Darl! I missed ‘im!!” Varadaman exclaimed, hugging you and then his brother. Darl smiled sweetly, tears pricking his eyes and he ran his hand through Vardaman’s hair. 

“I missed yew too,” he said, hugging his little brother tightly. “Do yew wanna cup of milk or anything lil’ brother?” He asked, heading towards the kitchen. 

After you got all the family cups of tea and milk, you started talking with them- who they are, why they were in Jefferson, and why they wanted to talk with Darl.

“Well, we came ‘ere to…” Cash cleared his throat, “We came ‘ere to bury Pa and Ma.” He said, bowing his head.  
“Wait- I thought yew already buried ma?” Darl asked, his face contorted in confusion.

“Pa married another woman.” Jewel stated, spitting at the thought, “She was worse than Addie. Lady was absolutely the worst. Always yellin’.” 

Darl nodded slightly, “Ah… so they both died? How?”

Vardaman spoke up, “They dun got sick.”

“Oh.” Darl whispered, shrinking into himself, looking forlorn.

There was a moment of silence before you spoke up, asking why they wanted to talk with Darl again, and what they wanted with him. Dewey Dell piped up, “We missed him! If yewr brother got carted off, yew’d miss ‘em too!” Darl shot her a look, seemingly annoyed at her for some reason. Dewey Dell continued, “And when Jewel said yew were out, we were overjoyed! We missed yew. We want tuh take yew home!” She insisted, cradling her baby.

Darl shot out of his chair, hitting his fists on the table, “NO. I’m staying HERE. I don’t want to go back there ever again! Do you know what yew did to me when you sent me away? Do yew know what they DID to me?” He started yelling, his face turning crimson, tears beginning to flow down his cheeks. “Yall just think yew can come in here and think everything’s ok??”

“Yer lucky we even WANT you back you son of a bitch! If it were up tuh me, I’d beat yuh tuh a pulp!” Jewel retorted, his face darkening. 

“Stop, both of yuh. This is something that’ll take time to fix. We can’t just expect Darl tuh come on back home. We need tuh fix this. Darl- why dun’t yuh wanna come home?” Darl couldn’t answer though, he was crying too hard, his body shaking and his eyes darted all over the room. You heard him muttering to himself- repeating yes over and over. “Darl? Duh yuh need us tuh go?” Cash asked, gently placing a hand on his brother’s shoulder.

Darl grabbed hold of Cash, embracing him, and crying into his shoulder, “Please don’t go yet, I missed all of yew…” He cried, voice shaking. There was a long pause, the only audible sound was Darl’s sobs and the rain on the roof and windows. The baby started crying.

Dewey Dell decided to take the baby home, as well as Varadaman, as it was getting late. Leaving you with Darl and his brothers. “Darl, please, tell us why yuh don’t wanna come back.” Cash asked once more, releasing himself from his brother.

Darl collapsed on the floor, rubbing his eyes, “It just brings back bad memories… It reminds me of ma and pa. It reminds me of all the bad times. Here I’m happy. Here I’m with her,” He mentions, motioning to you. “I don’t want to leave her here. She’s my rock.” 

“Yuh dun’t have tuh leave hur, idiot.” Jewel grumbled into his drink. “She can come with us.” Darl looked at Jewel in astonishment, then looked at you. “I’m sure yuh tew’ve gotten tuh know each other well enough tuh break up now,” He laughs and smirks into his drink.

“I mean, we’re happy together. I want her to be with me. She could live with us?” Darl asked, looking at Cash. You smile at Cash, trying to convince him. 

“Yeah, a-course. It’d be nice tuh have more womenfolk ‘round the place,” Cash beamed back at you and gives you a thumbs up, “I only request that yuh tew be quiet during yur… affairs.” Cash laughs, looking at Jewel who chimed in. You and Darl both turned red, looking at the floors until Darl started laughing too.

“Ok, I… I’ll think about it. I think it would be nice, to be together as a family again,” Darl smiled weakly. “I missed the country. Wide open air, Jewel’s horse, the animals and fresh food…” 

Jewel down next to Jewel, gently punching his shoulder, “Nice tuh have yuh back, bruther,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you read through everything, I just wanna say thank you for reading my first ever official fan fiction! I'm so excited to start doing more, and hope you liked this one! If you read through this whole thing but did NOT read teh original book- why??? It's a nice read, I'd recommend it!


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